This invention pertains to generally to hand tools and more specifically to pry bars used to move or pry objects.
Pry bars are used to pry and move objects using leverage. A number of pry bar designs are known. Usually, pry bars are forged from steel bar material to provide sufficient strength to prevent breakage during use and as a result pry bars are relatively heavy. Pry bars also typically include prying tips at one or both ends, as disclosed for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,429 to Khachatoorian. As shown in the ""429 patent, pry bars commonly employ U-shaped prying hooks at one end and a prying chisel at the other end. The U-shaped prying hook commonly defines a flat and an initial fulcrum point positioned intermediate along the outer leg of the U-shaped hook.
Improvements over existing pry bar designs are disclosed herein.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a pry bar comprises a shank portion and an integral U-shaped prying hook that is free of defined flats and instead has a continuous cam surface extending all the way to the tip end. The U-shaped prying hook has an inner leg and an outer leg that meet at an apex and that extend in different transverse prying directions relative to the axis. The inner leg connects the outer leg to the shank portion. The outer leg includes an inner face and an outer cam face facing axially toward and axially away from the shank portion, respectively. The outer cam face continuously curves from the apex to the terminating tip.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention provides a configuration for the shank portion that can be utilized to increase strength of a pry and/or decrease weight of a pry bar and/or provide for a good gripping surface for the pry bar. The pry bar includes axially extending channels in opposed sides of the shank portion. With channels, the shank portion defines a generally I-shaped cross section perpendicular to the axis having a height and a width, with wider top and bottom beam portions and a narrower intermediate beam portion.